Reciprocating pusher conveyer



Sept. 11,1951 G. A. LEE

RECIPROCATING PUSHER CONVEYER 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 31., 1945 Sept. 11, 1951 G A LEE RECIPROCATING PUSHER CONVEYER 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 31, 1945 G. A. LEE

Sept. 11, 1951 RECIPROCATING PUSHER CONVEYER 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed March 31, 1945 Patented Sept. 11, 1951 RECIPROCATIN G PUSHER I CON VEYER George Arthur LeeiEhfield, England, assignor to i Bi m h m Autopack (London) England Application March 31, 1945, Serial 0. 585,874- In Great Britain July 15, 1943 A 1 Claim. (01. 1'98 224) This invention has for its objectto provide improved machines for charging receptacles with liquid or solid substances. The invention is more particularly concerned with machines for char ing receptacles in the form of ampoules with liquid drugs or like substances, but it may be applied to machines forcharging other receptacles with liquid, or with granular, powdered, or other solid substances.

In the accompanying sheets of explanatory drawings:

Figure 1 is a front elevation (with the ends broken away and some of the parts omitted) of a machine constructed in accordance with the invention for charging ampoules with a medicinal liquid.

1 Figure 2 is a sectional plan taken on the lines 2-. 2 of Figure 1..

Figure 3 is a similar view to Figure 2 illustrating the machine in a different position.

Figures 4 and 5 are cross sections taken respectivelyon the lines 44. and 5-5 of Figure 2.

Figure 6 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 6-6 of Figure 2..

- Figure 7 is a section taken on the line of Figure 5. o v

' Figure 8 is a view of the discharge end of the machine with some of the parts omitted.

In carrying the invention into effect as shown, I employ a narrow horizontal support a on which the lower ends of the ampoules as b to be charged can rest, and which has the form of a straight metal or other bar or bars of any convenient length or lengths. As viewed in an endwise direction the support is suitably tilted sothat the ampoules b can be supported thereon withtheir axes inclined to the vertical as shown in Figures 4, 5 and 8. At one side of the support a is arranged a track along which the ampoules b can be moved. This track comprises a pair of horizontal bars 0 arranged parallel with each other and with the support a. One of the track bars 0 is situated adjacent to the support a so as to form a lateral abutment for the lower portions of the ampoules b and the other of the track hers is arranged at a position such that the necks of the ampoules can rest against it. It will be seen that the bases of the ampoules b rest on the support a, and their sides lean against the front edges of the track bars c, these edges being situated in an inclined plane, and being corrugated so as to form depressions for retaining a succession of ampoules at a convenient distance apart. The track bars 0 and the support a are carried through the medium of a horizontal base piece cv on the upper side of a casing tobe hereinafter referred to. the lower trackbar being secured to the .upperside of the basepiece, the: upper track bar being secured to theupper ends of posts 9 on the base piece, and the support being connected to the lower. track bar at. posi-. tions indicated by h. in Figures 2 and 3. I

For propelling the ampoulesb along the track bars 0 I.employ a pair of parallelbars z which are interconnected byrods :i and which are corrugated along their front edges to form spaced depressions for engagement with the ampoules,- one of these bars being situated immediately above the lower trackbar and theother imme.-.- diately below the upper track bar. a a

Any convenient actuating mechanism havin a pair of spacedconnections with one of the propelling bars z is employed forimparting a compound reciprocatory motion to the propelling bars, such motion consisting of a forward lateral movement of the propelling bars wherebythe ampoules b are carried out of thevadiacent de pressions in the track bars 0. a longitudinal movement of-the propelling bars wherebythe ampoules are carried along the support a; anre-t tractive lateral movement of'the pr'opelling'bars whereby the ampoules are allowed to occupy the next depressions in the track bars, and finallyan idle return longitudinal movement whereby the propelling bars are returned to their initialpositions. In the examples shown the actuat n mechanism for imparting the above described compound reciprocatory motion to the propelling: bars 2 comprises-a driving shaft lc (Figures l and 5) whichis adapted to receive motion from any convenientsource, such as an electrical motor (not shown),.and is arranged in the cas-.- ingf, a pair of driven shafts m connected by.

worm gearing as n to the driving shaft and ex,- tending at their upper ends through the base piece e, and .discs 0 secured to the upper ends of the driven shafts and connected by crank pins p to the lowerpropellingbar; .Rotation of;the.

driven shafts m causes the crank pins p to move; around the axes of these shafts, and as thelower propelling .barz'. is connected to the upper propelling .bar, and. to both of the crank pins,. it

follows that the movementsof the cranklpinsv cause the ,required compound reciprocatory mo.-;. tion of the propelling bars relative tothefixed support a and trackv bars 'c. The ampoules b are fed successively by ,an attendant or automati callyto thereceiving end of the support a. [The forward lateral movement of the propelling bars,

11 auses e ampou es b tobe a r ed o t f th adjacent depressions in the track bars c, the ensuing longitudinal and retractive lateral movements of the propelling bars cause the ampoules to be moved along the support a and allows them to occupy the next depressions in the track bars, and the following idle movement of the propelling bars causes them to be returned to their initial positions preparatory to their next action on the ampoules. Consequently, by the action of the propelling bars 1', the ampoules b are caused to travel intermittently along the track bars until they reach the discharge end where they are collected. 7 l For charging each ampouleb inturnwith the required quantity of liquid, I employ any convenient reciprocatory pump q (Figure?) adapted to be actuated intermittently in synchronisi n with the propelling movements above described. In the example shown the pump comprises a vertical tubular body part 1' carried by and extending through the upperside of .the casing f, and-a hollow plunger sslidable in and. extending from the upper end of the-.bodypart, the plunger being loaded by a spring s which tendsto move the plungerin theoutward direction. The lower end of the body .part r is provided with an axial inlet passageht .whichat .itsoinner ,end forms a seating for a non-return, valve u, and at its outer endis adapted for connection. by a flexible or other .pipe .0 .to any convenient source. of the liquid with which the ampoules b are tobe charged. Moreover, the lower end of the hollowplunger s serves as a seating for anothernon-return valve w,.and the .upper end of-theplunger is. provided with a liquid outlet 9:. The non-return valves u, were arrangedlsothat liquid can be drawn into the body part rthrough the, inlet passage t by upward movement of the plunger s, and discharged from the body part through the outlet :2 by. downward movement of theplunger. The pump outlet .connectedbyaflexible pipe 1/ to. a reciprocatoryhollow needle or tubez (Fig: ures 1 and 5) which.is.adaptedyto enter in turn the necks of the ampoulesb, and which is also adapted to. beactuated intermittently in synchro'nism with the. movementsof the propelling bars 1. V The needleaisadjustably carried byv a crank .2 oncne end of a telescopically adjustable arm .whichat its otherer'rdisadjustably secured on anaxially slidable rodi, the latter being arranged to pass through the base piece e abovementioned and. being slidably supported by a tubular. guide 6 on this base piece.

. Motion in the propersequence is, imparted to the .pump plunger 8 and to the needle z from a shaft lwhich is arranged within the casing j at right angles to the drivingshaft k, and which can receive rotarymotion from the driving shaft through. the medium of .a disconnectible clutch 8 (Figures 5 and 7). This clutch comprises a disc 9 secured on the shaft 1., a sleeve l0 freely mounted. on this shaft and connected by worm gearing II to thedriving shaft 10,. and a spring loaded pawl =l2 mounted on one side of the disc and engageable with a notch. I3, in an adjacent flanged end or the sleeve, thearrangement being such outer end of a short lever IT-which at its other end-is secured on an oscillatory shaft 48, the latter beingsupportedwithin the casing if r (in a po-- 4 sition beneath and at right angles to the shaft 1) by end pivots l9, and being loaded by a spring 20 which serves to hold the roller on the lever in contact with the cam face. Also secured on the oscillatory shaft IB is one end of another and relatively long lever 2| which at its other end is slotted and engages a laterally projecting pin 22 on the lower end of the slidable rod -5. The periphery of the other cam l5 co-operates with a roller 23 on a slotted lever 24 which is pivoted at I 25 to the casing f, and which engages a roller or other lateral projection 26 on one end of a link --2'l, the other end of the link being connected to mg 1. During rotation of the shaft 1, the slidable rod 5 is moved by the cam H in the direction for retracting the needle 2, and by the spring 20 in the direction for advancing the needle. Also the pumpplunger sis moved bythe cam 15 in thedirection for. discharging liquid fromrthe pump q through .theneedle. z, and by the spring 8 in the direction for..charging. the pump with liquid from the source of supply. ..Moreover, the arrangement-is.suchthat discharge .of. liquid through the needles occurs each time the needle is advanced intothe neck of anampoule b.

To prevent dischargepf .thepumpq in the event otan ampoulel: notbeing in position to receive the charge, I arrange adjacenttothe ampoule-charging position a ...pad r or. pressure piece-3iadapted to controlthe clutchiafrom which motion is impartedfrom the. driving shaft k to the shaft 1 The pad. .or.pressure..piece 3| is adjustably mounted on one end of acranked rod 32 which is slidably supported by. thecasing I so that the pad or pressure piece. can be moved by the rod towards and awayfrom the front side of an ampoule 1b occupying its charging. position on the-support a. Theother end of .thelrod 32 has a pin-and-slot connection with one arm of a double-armed lever .33 .whichiis pivoted at 34 to the base piece e, and the other arm .of. the lever is adapted at .its. outer, end to coeoperate with a cam 35 on one of the shafts above-: mentioned. The lever.33 .is loadedby. a spring 36 which serves by its action :on the lever tofmove.

the pad. or pressure piece/8| in..one. direction,

movement of thepad or. pressurepiece in theop advanced towards the ampoule-chargingposition. under the action of .the spring 36. Ifan ampoule.

bis in -therchargi-ngposition it arrests..the pad or-pressure piece 3i and is held firmly against the track bars 0 by the force-of the spring--36 until the amopule is charged; whereupon the ampo'ule is released by retraction of the pad or pressure piece under the action -of the oam-3i.

But if an ampoule -b is not in the charging poni tion,- the pad or-pressure piece'll can continue its advance and thereby-allow thelever '32 to operate a trip device for temporarily disconnect;- ingthe clutch 8, and so-preven-ting actuation-cf the pump q and needle 2 until thenext cycle; oruntil an amp'oulecomes into position for-chart ing, it being understood "that the "pad or pressure piece is advanced and-retracted in each ofthe successive cycles. The trip device I above-men tioned comprises a bell crank-lever '31 pivoted to the base piece e and adapted at one end to cm operate with the lever Shari oscillatory spindle 38' mounted in the casing f ai-rd havingaladlfil' arm 39. which is connected to the. other end'of the. bell crank; lever by-ja link 40, andganother radial arm .42 mounted .on the spindle V and adapted, to be movedthereby into and out of the path of a lateral'projeeti'on' 43 on the pawl l2 of the clutch 8, the spindle being loaded by a helical torsion spring 44 'which tends to retain the spindle in a positionin which the last inentioned arm is out of the path of the pawl projection. When an ampouleis not in .the..charging position the pad .or pressure piece 3| allows it actuating lever 33. to impart movementgto the bell, crank lever 31.. Thiseauses the spindle 38 to be moved angularly against the action of th'ejspring-M into a position which the arm un s in the path of the pawl projtion'43. By contact of its projection 43 withj'the arm 42 the'pawl 2 is disengaged from the notch I3'inthe' clutch sleeve I9, andthe clutch 8 isf'put out of action until the pawl reengages the notch. 'This' reejng'fagement'is'effeCteda'utOmaticaIly by the ,spring loading of thepaw'lllz a'fter a completere'volution of the sleeve provided that thetripdevice above described is not in themeantirn'e again operated.

After being charged each ampoule b is carried forward by the propelling bars 2' along the track bars 0 to a sealin region in which the neck of the ampoule is sealed by fusion. Adjacent to this region I provide a series of (e. g. three) gas burners 45 which in the example shown are mounted on the upper track bar 0. Preferably the air required for admixture with the gas at the burners 45 is provided at constant pressure by an air pump (not shown) driven by any convenient part of the machine. While in the sealing region each ampoule b is rotated about its principal axis. To enable this to be effected I gap the lower track bar 0 in the sealing region, and provide in the gap a series of rollers 46. These rollers 46 are mounted on the base piece e and are arranged so that each ampoule b rests partly on the periphery of each of an adjacent pair of the rollers while occupying a sealing position in front of each burner 45. The rollers 46 are rotated in the same direction through gearing 41 by any convenient part of the machine, such as one of the driven shafts m, and by their rotation serve to rotate the ampoules b in the ealing region. Further, I preferably gap the support a at this region, and provide in the gap a series of pivot-like or rounded supports 48 are adjustably mounted on a can rest, thus facilitating rotation of the ampoules by the rollers 46. The pivot-like or rounded supports 48 are adjustably mounted on a plate 49 which is secured to the underside of and bridges the gap in the support a. To facilitate movement of the ampoules b between the support a and the pivot-like or rounded supports 48, I mount on the plate 49 another plate 50 which extends into the outer side of the gap in the support a, and on which the lower ends of the ampoules can rest during their movements to and from the sealing positions, the upper surface of the latter plate being flush with the upper surface of the said support. Preferably and as shown the plate 50 is adiustably secured to the plate 49 by, for example, a screw secured at one end to the plate 50 and passing through a slot 52 in the plate 49, the other end of the screw being provided with a securing nut 53. This enables the extent to which the plate 50 projects into the gap in the support a to be varied as required.

After fusion of their necks the charged ampoules b are carried along the track bars 0 to a discharge position where they leave the adjacent end-lof the support a and slide on. to a ledge 54 (Figure 8) which forms anextension of the base of a receiving tray 55, this ledge being situated at a. convenient distance below the support;

Adjacent to the ledge 54 there is pivoted on a fixed bracket 5'6 one end of a lever 51 having its pivot axis situated below the ledge. The lever 51 is shaped and arranged so that when an am-' poule reaches the discharge position along the track bars c it can slide along one side of the lever on to the ledge 54, and can rest against this side of the lever whilst on the ledge. Preferably and as shown the ledge 54 is of arcuate form, having its centre of curvature at about the pivot axis of the lever 51. 'The lever 51 is eonnected by a link or links 58 to another lever 59 which is also pivoted at one end on the bracket 56, this lever being loaded by a spring 60 or a weight. The other end of the lever 59 has mounted on it a roller 6| through which this lever can be actuated by the lower impelling bar i while the latter is making the idle part of its movement prior to the next advance of the ampoules b along the track bars 0.

When an ampoule b reaches its discharge position (where it is supported in part by the track barsc and in part by a V-shaped piece 62 situated between the track bars) it slides downwardly on to the ledge 54. The lower propelling bar 1' then strikes the roller Bl on the lever 59 and causes the latter to actuate the lever 51 which moves the ampoule along the ledge and in so doing lifts it from its inclined position to a vertical position. By this action the ampoule is transferred from the ledge 54 to the tray 55. On release of the lever 59 by the lower propelling bar i, both this lever and the lever 51 return to their initial positions under the action of the spring 60 or weight associated with the lever 59,

these positions being determined by contact of the lever 51 with a stop 63 on the bracket 55.

If desired I may employ two ampoule-receiving trays situated side by side and mounted on a slide enabling either to be brought opposite the track-discharge position, so that while one is being loaded the other can be emptied by an attendant. Alternatively, instead of discharging the ampoules on to a tray, they may be discharged on to a table, or on to a moving conveyor.

In the foregoing I have described an application of my invention to a machine for charging ampoules, but I desire it to be understood that the invention may be applied to machines for other analogous uses. Thus, for example, it may be applied to a machine for charging larger receptacles with liquids, or with granular, powdered or like solid substances. In this case the character of the charging means would be appropriately modified, and the fusion sealing means would be dispensed with or replaced by any other convenient means for closing the receptacles, but in all cases essentially the same means are employed for traversing the receptacles through one or more operational stages.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

A machine for charging small receptacles with liquid or solid substances, having in combination a horizontal support on which the receptacles can rest in inclined positions, stationary track bars arranged parallel with each other to form spaced abutments against which the receptacles on the support can lean, and which are formed with: named depressions for locating the re Mptacles," interconnected propelling ba'rs which are arranged in parallel relationship with. each other and with .the. track bars, and by which the receptacles can bemoved intermittently along thesupp'ort, 'the propelling bars being situated adjacent to the track bars, and being formed with spaced, depressions forv accommodating the receptacles {during their movement by the WC)- polling bars along thesupport, actuating mechanism having a pair of spaced connections with one ofthe propelling bars for imparting to the latter a compound reciprocatory motion consistingot :a forward lateralmovement for carrying the receptaclesgaway from the depressions in the track bars a longitudinal movement for moving the receptacles along the support, a'retractlve lateral movement for allowing the receptacles to occupy the next depressions in the track bars, and an idle return longitudinalmovement, a statilonary ledge on to which the charged receptacles are movable in succession-from the support by the propelling bars, a transfer lever for transferring the receptacle's from the Iedgeto a re- 'cemng position, and in actuating lever con meted to the transfer levcnthe actuating'leve'r being "operable by one of the propelling bars.

' GEORGE'ARTHUR uneasiness orm'n 'The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

